JEDEC History - 1960s

Military and aerospace systems drove the development and sale of the first integrated circuits. In such applications, the relatively high cost of ICs was easily justified by their small size, low weight and reduced power consumption compared to discrete transistor designs. By 1965, the Minuteman II missile guidance system became the largest single consumer of ICs.

“There seems little doubt that electronics has established itself as one of the economic foundations of our modern society,” said EIA’s 1963 annual report. “Our sophisticated defense arsenal would be impossible without electronics, as would our explorations of space.”

Semiconductors represented the fastest growing product unit in the EIA. In 1961, the Semiconductor Section had 54 manufacturer members, representing more than 90 percent of industry production, up from 39 members in 1960. In fact, semiconductor growth was so strong that in 1963 the Semiconductor Section split off to form its own division.

Commerce and education were starting to use electronics. Texas Instruments provided the first ICs used in a consumer product – hearing aids – in 1964 and by 1967 the company introduced the first handheld calculator. Mainframe computers were being designed around ICs. IBM developed a hybrid microcircuit called Solid Logic Technology and produced it in high volumes for its System/360 mainframes. As ICs were incorporated in more industrial and commercial products, the dual-in-line package (DIP) was developed. The DIP revolutionized computer manufacturing by simplifying layout and allowing automated insertion into printed circuit boards, thus reducing costs.

Two companies that would become major players in the computer market – Intel and Advanced Micro Devices – got their start in the late ‘60s. Although it was founded to produce memory chips, Intel found itself developing an IC for a Japanese calculator in 1969. This chip, the 4004, became the first microprocessor.